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THE COLLECTORS by BethAnne Kapansky Wright

The following is an excerpt from Lamentations of the Sea...

It is a book I wrote and the book I wished I had a year ago when I lost my brother and lost any sense of life as it once was. Throughout the past year, I have taken a passage of grief that has taken me to some very dark and stormy places and taken me to some very beautiful and light places. 

The Collectors is one of the beautiful and light places. I wrote it last summer, inspired by the life affirming change of seasons, the glowing warmth of the sunshine, and the lovely colors of the flowers, which were medicine for my tired soul after a winter filled with grief. It is a reflection on what a privilege life is, and despite the hardships that come with being human, there are many beautiful gifts that come too. 

Every ending is always a genesis for new beginnings. Any undoing will always leave space for new becoming. And at the end of the day, each day is simply a collection of moments here to help us grow and teach us about love. 

Artwork by the author, BethAnne Kapansky Wright



The Collectors
by BethAnne Kapansky Wright

They are drops in a salmon sea,
this collection of moments
that compose
our days--

Each of us collecting the love
we have come here to learn.

I watch life rise:
an opening of heart and joy
and strings of feral roses...
only to watch it fade to tangerine twilight,
so it can set, then learn
to open when time
once more.

Everything a season, each open a closing,
each end a beginning,
each love that passes through our lives
a gateway for growth.

And do you see that it is
all a miracle, all a privilege
to be a collector of this
time and space?

A gatherer of each coral bloom
and peach swept set;
a taker of this Grace called Life;
a giver of all we collect.

Because we are just passing through,
standing on the stars,
scooping the moments into us,
watching the Love
go by.


(This poem appears in the author's new book found here
Artwork by the author, BethAnne Kapansky Wright


BethAnne Kapansky Wright: I am a Clinical Psychologist who enjoys writing, illustrating and creating. I specialize in dealing with women's issues, life transitions, trauma, grief work, and finding healing in our relationships, especially our relationship with our self. I am a big believer in authenticity, intuition, the power of love, finding laughter and joy, and learning to be more fully human. My essays and poetry have been published in a variety of publications, and I am the author of the poetry books Cranberry Dusk, Freebird Fridays (November 2016, Golden Dragonfly Press) and Lamentations of the Sea: 111 passages on grief, love, loss and letting go. I currently lives in Anchorage, Alaska with my soul mate and our fur kids and my beloved mountains and trails. I can be found on Facebook or on my blog: Sunshine in Winter, here. 



~If you are interested in seeing your poetry appear in this blog, or submitting a poem by a woman that has inspired you, please click here for submission guidelines. I greatly look forward to hearing from you!~ 

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